After All
by Felis Atrox
Summary: UPDATED 9-1! Post TCoR. The bloody and humorous tale of Riddick's animal side, from beginning to end. The darkest side of Riddick revealed in his predatory nature, and a new spin on the Diet of a Furyan.. AU/AR, Language, M/M, Other, Violence, WIP, Gore
1. Prologue

Disclaimer: I do not own Pitch Black, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Hey all. I've been writing for YEARS now, and this is my very first Riddick story. I have some warnings for you!  
WARNING!! This story contains or WILL contain:  
offensive language  
explicit sex  
Extreme violence and gore  
semi-cannibalism (Or, more accurately, eating of human beings).  
AU situations (Jack is not Kyra, and the second movie never happened)  
Gross, morbid humor

OK then, that's through. By the by, I DON'T OWN ANY CHARACTER FROM RIDDICK'S UNIVERSE....but I created a couple that will appear later on.

I VERY much like feedback, so if you love it/hate it, let me know!

ONE LAST TIME: I DO NOT SKIMP ON THE GORY DETAILS!

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It was then he knew the difference between him and all the 'normal' criminals out there. When he became something less, or more, than a man- perhaps some kind of animal.

Hunger gnawed at him like an old bone and left him weak and powerless to its desires, as he stared down at the body at his feet. The man had come just too close for his sleeping place for comfort; Riddick had awoken with the man's scent filling his throat, crouched just a few feet away. He had been some kind of businessman, perhaps involved in money. Certainly too involved in his cell phone conversation to see his attacker. And it came quick.

With his rational, too human brain shoved to the back of a faraway place, Riddick started the butchery. Someone would see or smell the blood a while from now, but by then the pieces would be long gone. He hefted a still warm organ in his hand, as if testing the gravity around him to make sure he was still sane. The heart smelled faintly of alcohol, of sweet, brand new blood, and- a faint nausea came- fresh meat.

The hunger was there again, having been carefully stowed until now. Riddick leaned over the side of the suspended sidewalk and dry heaved his own saliva until he realized the heart, still in his hands, had been crushed. Now he had to look real hard to identify it as something other than bloody pulp and some tubes. He glanced once more at the body, now in many smaller pieces, and knew a predatory sensation.  
After all, he thought as byway of an explanation to the small section of his human mind that hadn't been demolished by his actions…..After all, he thought as he chewed and swallowed his first piece of human, and then his second…..After All, it really isn't cannibalism if you aren't at all human.


	2. Chapter 1

Riddick wove in and around the veritable rat's nest of pipes and wires and seemingly useless bits of metal that made up 90% of the space-colony city. He was quiet, careful as always, even with his hands slippery with blood. Had anyone seen him moving through the metal jungle, they would've said to themselves: 'Damn, that guy has a family of rodents colonizing his ass!'. Riddick was disturbed, and it felt like a fishhook under his skin, tugging painfully but minutely. He refused to think on it until he was somewhere safe- thinking took time, and time was not to be given away freely.  
With a low _khunk_, he landed on the top of an empty, greasy oil drum, and was immediately up and away before anyone responded to the noise. Not that anyone was around- this was home, amongst the empty, possibly toxic metal drums, the scrap metal and tires, the occasional dead animal or pile of bones. He stopped only when he was fully enclosed in the darkness of a hollow between the massive stacks of metal- who needed skyscrapers when you had chemical waste barrels? There was a steady drip of dirty water nearby, and he was instantly under it, washing off the thin blood and small chunks of flesh with a shudder and a sigh. After that, there was plenty of time for thinking…unfortunately.

***

He should have known it was going to be a shit job, the very second he stepped into his employers 'office'. The man had promised a fat wad of cash for such a simple hit, Riddick ought to have been suspicious. But…he needed the money more than the good judgment, apparently. He'd stalked into the office, assaulted by the thick stench of terror, human filth and sweat. The man looked vaguely like a chicken, extra skin and everything, and clucked out the name and location…and the sum of money to be had. Riddick took the job- like he took most jobs- and immediately went off in search of his 'prey' for the evening. He shoulda known.

It was a greenhorn mistake, something little punk-ass kids did before they learned better- As soon as Riddick had spied his target, he moved in without a second's thought, getting about four feet before all twelve of the man's bodyguards noticed him. He had failed, somehow, to notice them. It was a bloody stroke of luck that he managed to escape without getting his brain plastered to the walls…But even so, he'd missed his one chance to take the man down. Which meant no money was to be had. Worst yet, beyond even the infected wound a week down the road from the attack…was the would-be victim's tenacity. He wanted Riddick FOUND, no matter what the cost was.

Now Riddick had gone to ground, hiding in an inhospitable, admittedly very disgusting place. At least nobody would find him. Food, sleep, clean clothes…those all came second to staying hidden.

Riddick had been hungry ever since he realized he couldn't just go out and steal some food. It was like someone flicked a switch on in his gut, the Make-You-Miserable button. The infection his wounds eventually dispersed, but the weakness was still there. He drank water through his shirt, to keep the large bits of dirt or whatever they were out, and slept inside one of the cleaner barrels whenever he could. At one point, someone several sidewalk-tiers above him dropped their ice cream, and it fell through the various levels of grates and mesh, picking up all kinds of nasty on the way down…but he was on it like a man possessed.

Finally, _finally_, the hunger got to be a painful, living thing that chased him out of his hiding spot, desperate for ANYTHING to eat. He didn't recognize himself, the savageness that normally stayed hidden. He wandered out, as cautious as a deer in the winter, and nobody gave him a backwards glance. Just another bum, they thought- for once, he was thankful he smelled like three week old Death. The markets were crowded, always, in human settlements, and it was deliciously easy for one man to just walk by and take a single piece of fruit and melt away into the crowd. The apple was delicious, and much appreciated…but he knew he needed some kind of protein, very quickly.

His first attempt to snag some kind of wonderful smelling meat filled…something-or-other off a booth failed miserably, due to furious-little-Chinese-lady-with-claws-like-nails. Nobody hits old ladies, that would be sick. So after being chased off and screeched at, he tried again, in a different part of the noisy market. Some of his caution had left him, and this time when he dove in for a grab-and-go, he found himself being stared at by one of the same god-awful fucks that had nearly skinned him alive days ago, during the failed hit.

Riddick didn't have time to contemplate irony or bad luck or the horrible hunger yawning in him- he took off like a shot through the crowd, being ridiculously careful not to disrupt the flow of people, lest he leave a trail of yelling idiots to lead the guards right to him. The first chance he could get, he was down an alley, up a fire escape, through someone's bedroom- nice panties, by the by- and back into the mess pipes and wires that made up the side of a building. He kept running, too, until he was as far away from the market as he could be without leaving the protected area nearby the scrap metal heap.

And there he had found himself tucked into a narrow alleyway, staring at the back of the man that he was SUPPOSED to have killed days ago, chatting on his cell phone like nothing in the world could touch him.

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Riddick stayed crouched next to his oil drum, and he could still smell the blood under his fingernails. His stomach was full, and his body seemed rather pleased with itself, not giving two shits about the chunks of human it was digesting. Something about the meat agreed with him- even as he sat there, he could feel the fatigue, carelessness, weakness…all of it just dripping away. When the dim morning-glow lights came on to artificially wake the rest of the colony up, Riddick swayed and stood, having come to a conclusion in his sleepless night. He left the colony, hopped the very first ship that didn't know his name, and then met Johns.


	3. Chapter 2 Several Years Later

…SEVERAL YEARS LATER…

"Mmmm…Rapistburger. Nice choice. I woulda gone with cow, but yanno. Whatever."

Jack watched on with rapt attention, knowing she really SHOULDN'T be all that fascinated by the truly messy process. She was happy to see that her "Big Evil" was using the zip-up freezer bags she'd given him. Plus, it was just too priceless to watch Imam wander the house in search of the frequently-missing garbage bags, muttering to himself and shooing her out of the way occasionally to look in an obscure place.

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It'd been not-long-enough since the Hunter-Gratzner crash, since she'd met Riddick in the flesh. She could tell, the way you could tell an animal was sick, that he was starving. Just looking at him, all trussed up like a psychopathic Christmas tree with Johns in the background bragging about the all-too-easy capture…just looking at him, he looked weaker than a predator like he should be. She got the impression this guy didn't eat salads.

The second he'd escaped and everyone went on the panic, she knew he'd be back. Nobody could survive a desert, already half starved and shaken, without some kinda nourishment. And when he'd been caught again, after whats-his-name got ripped to pieces, she'd dared to creep down to the wreckage where he'd been chained. She offered up some of the rare bits of food they'd salvaged from the cargo hold- possibly the dumbest thing she'd ever done in her entire life, which said a lot- and he took it from her hand like a stray dog. Maybe it was the smartest thing- nobody wanted to bite the hand that fed, not even Riddick.

When he had been let free to wander on his leash, she'd watched him disappear over the rim of the crevice left by the Gratzner, supposedly "in search of unbroken water containers"…which she knew was a crock of shit. She followed him, trying desperately to be stealthy like only he could be. Fortunately- or unfortunately, for Riddick- he was so engrossed in eating as quickly as possible, he didn't hear her coming. Thank god it was just her, too, because as soon as she saw his hands shoved wrist deep in the ruined, charred body of one of the other passengers, she squawked, hit the ground, and vomited. He was on her, quick as a snake, one jagged piece of metal poised to stab straight up into her throat, one bloody hand pinning her to the ground. He'd made her a promise, right then and there, that if she ever told anyone that she'd even seen him NEAR that body, he'd make her into a well tenderized sandwich.

The first words she could choke out of her constricted throat as he scaled the ridge again were, "Kay you're…not..human, are you. Cuz yanno like. Cannibalistic people on earth got all kinds of diseases from doing that. And um. You're just mentally sick, I think."

Riddick ignored her.

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He'd intended to leave her on Helion Prime with Imam and disappear for awhile, but the thought of wronging someone who knew something about him that would send him straight to death row…displeased him. So Jack was to stay with Imam and go to school with the promise that if she did, he would stay nearby. But not with Imam. Imam was a vegetarian.

And now here he was, allowing her to watch him dismember somebody for the second time in her life while she held open a large garbage bag for him. As of yet, she;d only been able to bring herself to hold a beefsteak-like slab of muscle in the palm of her hand, still warm, before shuddering and tipping it into the bag. It was just as well- she really shouldn't enjoy touching raw human produce.

He closed up the bag and shouldered it, nudging a stray eyeball out of the way so she could hoist herself up off the ground next to him. She ended up squishing it anyways, and he took off down the deserted alleyways while she wiped the goo off of her shoes. He had to love the people of Helion- when the sun "went off", they went in, and nobody in the right minds was on the streets. Except rapists and other scumbags. (Of course, he though to himself, he wasn't a scumbag. He was a garbage disposal.)

Jack scuffed along behind him, careful not to get to close to him lest he stop suddenly and she crash into the "take out bag". She followed him until the streets and alleyways became familiar looking, his "territory", and down into the maze of ruin and rubble that led to his…home. Considerably better than a tire dump, Riddick had taken up residence in one of the many failed subway stations of Helion. Like others before it, this particular train had crashed horrifically during a test run, and the station was left to decompose. Water now ran through it, from some unknown source, and light shone through a few cracks and holes in the ceiling, illuminating the organized chaos that was Riddick's dragon cave. Complete, of course, with a few stray cats that stuck around when he was handing out scraps.

Jack paused to let her human eyes adjust to the darkness of the ruin, and by the time she could focus, Riddick had already banked a tiny fire and was delivering the more disgusting parts of the human body to the stray cats. They seemed happy enough, for eating what would normally own them, were they normal cats. Jack petted one as she passed to go sit by the fire, watching quietly while Riddick made his own meal out of tin foil and the hot coals in the fire. What wasn't immediately used he left in the bag for later- the man could put away epic amounts of food in a day, if he had the chance.

Riddick was perfectly silent through the whole process, occasionally glancing at Jack to make absolutely certain she wasn't about to run off and bring the National Guard. Finally, when there was nothing left to do but sit and wait for his dinner to cook, he allowed himself one small, contented sigh. Jack picked this as a cue to Start Talking.

"Hey yanno…I didn't throw up this time. That's good, right? I mean that I'm getting used to you doin weird shit all the time. Right?" She honestly didn't expect a response out of him, and was pleasantly surprised when he nodded slowly. "So um. Do you think those cats are gonna be those kinda cats that eat their owners when they die? Like a little old lady kicks it and all her eight-thousand cats just have at her like a buffet? Cuz I mean…they know what human tastes like now." She looked directly at him, obviously expecting a response, now that he'd encouraged her.

Riddick took a deep breath and let it out past his lips, massaging the knot of tension in his brow. "Jack…I..have no idea." She frowned and turned to look at the cats, who were bathing placidly and falling asleep in weird positions. "Maybe they'll skip the waiting part and just attack people on the street in hoards. Shit, I dunno."

It took her a few seconds to realize that he had just attempted humor- one small step for man…..- and then she cracked a grin that grew broader when it prompted a very small smile from him. He took the foil wrapped meat from the fire, undaunted by the steaming metal, and wolfed it down with a certain measure of pride. He'd taken to picking off the ass-pimples of society- rapists, sociopaths, people like him- for his meals. This one was no exception- the guy's parole officer was gonna shit a golden egg in the morning. He liked it that way. For now, he contented himself with his large meal until he was sated.

Jack opened her mouth and startled him out of a very light doze- she had been watching him attentively, which could have been extremely unnerving….were it not Jack.

"Hey. Wake up a sec." He shot her a dirty look, eyes looking like a couple of splinters of silver. "Yea, yea, glare at me," she went on, "So. If I die before you, which doesn't seem all that likely-"

"Thanks, Jack."

"-Shutup, trying to talk, here. Anyways, if I die first…you gotta promise me one thing, kay?"

"…what?" Riddick looked dubious, and rightfully so. Anything that could come out of Jack's piehole next promised to make a cat fart audible.

"You gotta eat me. Seriously, like…that would be the best tribute ever. Just don't eat my face. Got it?"

Riddick stared at her, and, if only to get her to shut the hell up and let him get some sleep and stop with the ridiculous suggestions, he nodded.

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Jack left him after that, winding her way back up to Imam's, happy in knowing that someday, perhaps she would be a Shish-Kabob.


	4. Chapter 3 After The Necromongers Attack

**Author's Note: At this point I should tell you that this story is actually going be rather long…and it is supposed to have a tinge of morbid humor in it. If you don't like it, that's fine.**

***

**...AFTER NECROMONGER ATTACK…**

They are on one leg before him and it is all but silent. Somewhere, something is dripping, making a mess on the floor. Probably the blood steadily dripping down the steps, he thinks. His blood, the Lord Marshal's blood…Kyra's blood. He doesn't crane his head to find out which.

He was tired. Truly, almost as tired as the first time he killed for food. They day he really became an animal- and make no mistake, he WAS an animal. That deep, naked-in-the-snow type of cold, exhausted feeling. Kyra- Jack, he reminded himself- was dead, he suddenly had an entire race of clammy corpse people thrust unto him, and he was slowly filling the insides of his heavy armor with his own blood. Really, that about summed the entire day up. Death, death, blood, corpse people, blood death blood. Oh, and the skinny little fuck-up at his side kept asking him low-voiced questions. The Necromongers were still on their knees, which had to be hurting by now. Jack was dead.

By god he was tired.

***

Days had managed to slip away from him as easily as the brand new silk sheets adorning the bed in his brand new gigantic bedroom. Ridiculously large, he thought as his gaze wandered lazily about the room, hidden behind his goggles. Riddick was convinced that the only reason time passed at all was because he kept his thoughts so carefully neutral. He didn't really want to think about it right now. And he really did not want the little posse of advisers and commanders currently swarming him with questions and little nuggets of wisdom and crap. He wasn't even paying attention- not that they knew, not being able to see his eyes- instead cleverly avoiding any responsibility by simply letting them handle it.

The Necromongers were not used to this. They needed orders, directions, exact specifications- and thus far, the only instructions to come from their newest Lord Marshal were to dim the lights, freeze the body of what they assumed was his former consort, and stay as far away from him as possible. When one of the advisers asked why the body must be frozen, instead of jettisoned into space like most useless things were, he was turned into a very messy little pile. And thus was born the implied list of Topics to Be Avoided. Kyra, goggles, dinner arrangements, and just about anything concerning the masses of people awaiting the gifts of his command- those were subjects that got people maimed.

Riddick stood stock-still, betraying his annoyance and exhaustion at the constant barrage of people that "really needed to speak with him". One after the other stood, said their piece, and were silently shot down by the unfriendly and as of yet quiet Lord Marshal. The skinny little soldier-boy was here…he was always here. It seemed that the moment Riddick slumped into his much unwanted throne, the little bastard latched on to him like a limpet. A no-doubt conniving, scheming little limpet. Riddick couldn't be bothered to remember his name. Started with a V, ended with a don't-give-a-fuck.

One of his loyal subjects managed to startle him out of his daze- the tiny man's voice was thin, reedy, and generally extremely unpleasant to be forced to listen to. He seemed to be very concerned with the current unhappiness of the nobles, his voice carrying about as much fear as it did actual meaning, to Riddick. And all at once he realized how just fucking delicious the little idiot would be.

Quickly, to cover the immediate and perverse stomach growl that followed that thought, he took one brisk step forward and almost roared,  
"ENOUGH! Good…gods, people. You have been at this all day. I have plenty to think about, now just GO!" It was perhaps the longest string of words he'd put together in…months.

The reedy-voiced man probably would have wet himself, had that been possible. He shrank back violently, tripping over his own feet in an effort to get away from Riddick, squeaking 1001 apologies and scurrying out the door. It took perhaps 30 seconds of silence- far too long in Riddick's opinion- for the rest of them to file out, visibly shaken. He knew he should have enjoyed that- who said Necros don't feel fear?- but he found himself just…too damn tired. And now hungry.

The commander- the one who always hung around him- lingered near the door, silent for a moment. When he spoke, it was very quiet- if Riddick didn't know the man better, he would have assumed he was…shy.

"My Lord…whether you-" He stopped short as Riddick prowled a bit closer, trying to pick up any veiled emotion the Commander might be having. It took a moment for him to realize that the Lord Marshal wasn't trying to scare him on purpose. "…Whether you enjoy this or not doesn't matter. You sort of…chose it. You need to act soon, lest your advisors start believing you are mute. And that might be seen as a weakness, my lord."

His little speech done, the man turned to leave, almost afraid of turning his back to the Lord Marshal, in case he should react violently to the almost-threat. Not that he had literally called him weak, he was just making a point, after all, and the Lord Marshal really did need to get on his feet and-

"Stop." Riddick's voice was just a low murmur, but it was a command all the same. The man turned away from the door, barely concealing a hard swallow. It was silent for a few moments more, allowing just enough time for the unfortunate man to formulate about a dozen ways he could be killed. And when Riddick spoke again, he almost jumped out of his skin and just barely managed to keep from turning and running. "You. You're always hanging around. Probably the first time I've heard you say anything."

There was another pause, and the commander could feel his Lord Marshal's eyes on him like a steady weight atop his chest, pressing him flat against the wall. He was being very closely studied, and when he finally managed to lift his gaze from the center of the imposing Lord Marshal's chest, up to his eyes…he found himself staring into two deep, black holes. Like a skull. He was quite sure his imagination could have taken THAT thought to the brink of insanity and back, when the Lord Marshal spoke again.

"What's your name." It was certainly not a question. The commander couldn't suppress the half relieved little puff of air that escaped him- a breath he hadn't known he'd been holding. The Lord Marshal was, maddeningly, smirking at him. And since when was he suddenly afraid of the man? Hadn't it been…no more than a week ago that he had tried to kill him at the behest of the since deceased Lord? It was, a bit unexpectedly, angering. He straightened up and stared back at Riddick, seemingly taking a bit of pride that, as of yet, he was the first person to do so.

"Vaako, my lord. Cylus..Vaako. I am….was..the First Commander under the previous Lord," He let out another tiny breath and wondered if he was to be killed or not. As an afterthought, he added, "..My lord." And waited for Riddick to slaughter him, or send him on his way.

Riddick mulled this over for a moment, still appraising the commander from beneath his goggles. The man certainly had some guts- at least compared to the remainder of the Legion Vast- and so, after just one more moment, Riddick nodded.  
"Alright, fine. Get out of here."

Vaako really didn't need to be told twice. He remained careful, reigning in that obnoxious desire to turn and bolt like a scared little animal. He was gone quickly, but not before he heard the loud command of:  
"And don't let anybody else bother me today!"  
Before the door clicked shut.

***

Riddick listened for the sound of any more footsteps- coming or going. When he was sure that the Commander-  
"Vaako."  
he said aloud, as if to cement it in his brain- was fully down the hall and around the corner, he let out an explosive sigh and sprung into movement. It wasn't often that he felt constrained, these days…but somehow the little sea of expectant faces, constantly staring at him,waiting for him to give them something to do…somehow that was oppressive. Well gee fucking whiz, I wonder why.

He prowled about his rooms restlessly, partly to help him think- apparently the gears had to be running for the clock to start working- and partly to work off the sudden hunger that had claimed him. Always on Helion, he'd been careful to keep himself fed; it never disgusted him anymore, but a starved animal was an unpredictable animal…and Riddick did so love to be in control of himself.

He stopped pacing at the foot of the monstrous bed, staring blankly at it for a moment before tilting forward and flopping, face first, into the plush surface. Really, if there could be one perk about his new job, it was the creature comforts. Riddick wasn't used to the feeling of ALWAYS being comfortable…and somehow….that also made him restless.

His stomach growled again, loudly, and he groaned and turned over. Enough thinking, enough moping. Jack would have teased him mercilessly, had she been here to see him like this.

***

Vaako slunk away as quickly as his dignity allowed. Whether or not he'd not been officially declared First Commander under the new Lord Marshal- he still carried the authority of one. People moved out of his way, or got shoved out of his way. That was always a nice feeling.

Really, he had much to contemplate…but he found himself less and less inclined to brood these days. Especially since the Lord Marshal seemed incapable of making a solid decision…which left Vaako to do that for him. If Riddick thought HE was stressed, he needed to take a good look at the dark circles of sleeplessness under his First Commander's eyes.

Vaako fairly exploded into his collection of rooms, slamming the door shut behind him and, ignoring Dame Vaako's furious demands, disappeared into his private bed chambers.  
He stopped at the foot of his bed, shifted from foot to foot for a moment, and decided that since no one could see him, it would be alright if he ungracefully fell face first into the bed. It was time take the alotted ten minutes out of his busy, busy day to just…think for a moment.

Something was deeply wrong with the new Lord Marshal. Everything Vaako had learned about the man- the way he fought and walked and talked, the way he could inspire so much fear and shock in those around him with just a few simple words- EVERYTHING said that, were he in his right mind, Riddick would be ruling the Legion Vast with an iron fist by now. And since he wasn't…something had to be wrong.

Vaako rolled onto his back- approximately at the same time his Lord Marshal did, in his own rooms- and narrowed his eyes at the ceiling as if it would give him a few much needed answers.

The man didn't seem apt to grieve…and yet he was. And he always had been very decisive, in any encounter Vaako had previous had with the man….and yet now he was carefully avoiding decisions. And was it just him, or did the new Lord seem…just a tad less restrained and graceful as he normally was?

Vaako sat upright, hearing his wife handing out orders to the swarm of people that had just entered his rooms, begging for more decision making on the Lord Marshal's behalf. Vaako had done enough thinking- and resting, apparently- for one day. He sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose, where one of those rare, ungodly headaches was beginning to form. There was really no choice but to see to the people- Riddick's odd little issues would have to wait, for now.

***

As soon as he had rid himself of the small army of advisers and ruling nobles, Vaako made the spur of the moment decision to pay a visit to the rarely used, much forgotten data base of the Legion ship. Really, he just needed to go somewhere devoid of people- especially Dame Vaako, who had reached new levels of annoyance- and if he managed to get something accomplished at the same time, so much the better.

He wove his way through the increasingly narrow halls, seeing fewer and fewer people on his way down to the blessedly silent underbelly of the ship. For once in a very long time, Vaako was unable to hear anything except the clicking of his boots and the dull hum of the machinations of the ship. The corridor leading up to the room stuffed with papers and- a rarity, these times- books was incredibly musty and simply REEKED of privacy. Which was wonderful.

He let the door hit the opposite wall on his way into the room, the dim, dust covered lights flicking on automatically. The room was rank, stinking of mold and disuse. He sighed- alone at last- and picked his way around the stacks and stacks of unshelved and unsorted books littering the floor. Picking an aisle- any random aisle would do- he slunk into the shadows and slumped to the floor. He was hiding from things, and he knew it.

Vaako took a bit of time to stretch out his legs and give himself a good shake, as if casting off the unwanted responsibilities suddenly in his life. The floor was very slightly wet, and he didn't want to know why. He glanced around himself- at the walls and the dust motes in the air, resolutely thinking of benign things. He would have skipped over the book, any other day…but somehow, one dusty, cracked spine caught his eye. Vaako pulled himself into a crouch in front of the low shelf, peering at the disgusting old book. The title was mostly obscurred, probably water damage.  
"The…Furyan…god, what is that." He gave up trying to read the title under the dim light, plucking the book from the shelf and standing, holding it closer to the light. It didn't help much. "The Furyan…Physiology. Lovely."

He was in mid swing to throw the book into the deep shadows, when it suddenly struck him- Everyone knew that the new Lord Marshal was not only a breeder…but a Furyan breeder. That was the prophecy, right?

Vaako frantically flicked the book open and, just barely able to read the faded, smudged ink, scanned the pages for some kind of divine sign. Who knew- Furyans were such a mysterious breed! Perhaps his new Lord Marshal was simply experiencing some little biological…setback. Unconciously, he read the heading out loud, muttering to himself. Anyone watched would naturally assume he was insane.  
"'Habitat and Climate'..no. No, it isn't 'Defense Mechanisms', either. Good lord, who ever thought it was a good idea to PRINT data on paper was a bumbling idiot. 'Breeding and Reproduction'-" At this Vaako wrinkled his nose a bit, "I certainly HOPE that isn't it…'Diet and Prey'…" He was about the disregard that, too, flipping to the next section about aggression and body language- when something caught his eye on the page. He flipped back to the bit about diet.

"Prey?" He was struggling to make out the badly damaged text, holding it further up into the light. It was all very dramatic. "The Furyan is, by nature, a creature of intense instinct and demand. They frequently hunt and kill weaker beings, with no intention of consuming them, almost as a knee-jerk reaction to the body language and movement of the prey animal. But what the Furyan needs most is a constant supply of protein, as their body demands…something to feul their constant movement. In previous centuries, the Furyan race fed off of the high-fat content of the…" He couldn't pronounce the name of the creature listed, "..Which was commonly found on the planet. But in most recent times, as technology allowed the Furyans to branch off from the home world, they developed a strong taste for…" Vaako paused a moment, squinting at the page. Not that the words were particularly difficult to read, but they were perhaps a bit difficult to digest- "…For…human flesh. It was so readily available and easily hunted, that human flesh became a completely necessary part of the Furyan diet. Without it, they frequently sicken and…die."

***

Vaako stared at the pages for quite a long time before quietly putting the book haphazardly onto a shelf nearby. By now, his stomach had quit churning long enough for him to turn away from the aisle and continue on his way as though nothing had been learned. He could ignore this, really. If he just blocked out this new, horrifying information long enough, perhaps he wouldn't get….well, eaten.

He managed to glance up from his wet boots long enough to see one of the shadows in the next aisle move. Just long enough for him to SEE a pair of eyes staring at him from between the shelves, long enough to let out a undignified, shocked little sound- before the massive shelf swayed and fell towards him. Books flew off their perches as the massive structure made to crush him- thank god for his viper quick reflexes, he would have thought, had he not been busy fleeing the incoming doom.

Vaako flung himself out from bewteen the toppling aisles, skidding breifly on the watery floor before whirling about to face the would-be assassin. The noise was entirely painful in his ears, echoing down the halls as he sprung forward and caught the shockingly thin, pale little wrist of his attacker. Growling furiously, he yanked the traitor into the flickering light, as the shelves continued to topple- and by god it was a shock to see a small, heart shaped little face contorted in rage staring back at him. It was only a young girl!

Young, but certainly not defenseless. Before he could recover from the shock of realizing he almost got killed by a child, she lashed out, twisting her way out of his grasp with a snarl. One long, muscled leg whipped out and caught the unfortunate First Commander directly between his thighs. He actually left the ground for a few seconds, eyes saucer-wide, before slumping to the ground with a low whine. He's be DAMNED if Necromongers couldn't feel pain.

He gave one half-hearted swipe at the girl as she careened past him, trying to catch an ankle…but good lord he didn't want to be on the receiving end of THAT again! She flew by, knocking over stacks and stacks of books on her way to freedom- only to be stopped abruptly in the hands of two armor plated soldiers. They held onto her as securely as possible, even as she writhed and wriggled and bit and clawed, screaming some really horrible things the entire time.

Vaako took his time in getting up, shoving the piles of books out of his way. His soldiers had her, and she would NOT be kicking anyone in the privates anytime soon. He gave a short nod to one of the men, and the girl was promptly trussed up in shackles that folded her up into an unmanagable position. She gave a grunt of pain and dropped to the floor, succesfully incapacitated. When Vaako reached down to grasp her jaw, he almost dropped her again- her fierce green eyes boring daggers into him, promising the very worst to come. He hesitated just a moment too long- because she took the opportunity to twist and clamp her teeth into his hand, immediately drawing blood before he could pull away.

"DAMN!" He snarled, ripping out of her grasp. He stood to address the two mildly surprised soldiers, snapping at them, "Get her the fuck out of here, lock her away. Don't let anyone else touch her, because when it comes time to kill the little bitch, I'd LOVE to do it myself!" He shoved past them, quietly nursing his bleeding hand, all but blocking out the wonderful bits of information he'd just recently learned of his new Lord Marshal.

***

Riddick sighed, snapping his goggles back over his eyes as he heard the rapidly approaching footsteps. He'd been trying to temporarily assuage his hunger over a meal of the artificial meat they had pilfered from Helion Prime…which had ended with him hunched over the sink, vomiting. Clearly, his body had an opinion on the quality of food aboard the ship.

He straightened and prowled out and down to the meeting chamber at the front of his collection of rooms, doubly angry and ready to choke the next person to enter his door until they turned blue. Er.

And of course, if there was once person he hadn't expected to come flying through the doors, it was Vaako- hand in a bloody bandage and a furious snarl on his face, which evaporated quickly, the moment he saw Riddick tensed to spring. He skidded to a stop, instantly recalling the brief passage about the unexpectedly gruesome diet of the Furyan, and paling even further.

Had he been in any state to pay attention, he would have noticed that the Lord Marshal was rather haggard looking, skin about as grey as it could possibly get, in it's natural caramel color. Riddick straightened with some effort, all at once looking as though nothing at all was the matter.

"What is it, Vaako." He all but growled, eyeing the commander up and down and taking careful note of the way the man was holding himself, as if running here and put a great deal of stress on his-

"I'm sorry my lord, but something has…come to my attention. It might just be a trivial matter, but I thought perhaps you should know, anyhow." Normally, Vaako wouldn't have bothered the Lord Marshal with something so…beneath him, but Vaako's pride was just a bit wounded, and he felt someone should know. "Sir, there was a…stowaway aboard our ship. "

Riddick perked up just a bit, coming to the conclusion that if said stowaway was just a merc looking for trouble, he might have dinner after all.

"I happened upon her in the underbelly of the ship," He was careful to put any thoughts of the book in the back of his mind, "Where she violently attacked me…and..two soldiers. We have her in custody, and she will be terminated tomorrow morning, first thing." He nodded, pleased with himself somehow. And was promptly startled enough to jump when he found Riddick about two feet away from him, knowing he was being eyed very critically from beneath those goggles.  
"I…You know, I shouldn't have bothered you with this. Trivial, really. I apologize, my-"

"What did she look like?" Riddick wasn't sure he was capable of the type of hope he was currently experiencing, heart thudding so loud he was sure Vaako could hear it. Still shaken, Vaako paused for a moment, glancing about like there was some kind of escape route.

"Well…she had rather large..greenish eyes. She was incredibly fast..vicious, even. Strong, for someone her size and-"

He was cut off again, Riddick snarling at him, impatient: "Was she small, sort of…wiry. Short hair, big eyes. Where did you find her? Did she say anything?" He couldn't possibly be thinking this, but some little thing nagged at him, pressing him to know.

"Yes…and yes, my lord. She was between two aisles of bookshelves, hiding in plain sight. I didn't see her until she wanted me to, I think. And…" He paused, not liking the suddenly fiercely angry expression on the Lord Marshal's face, "And she…cursed. A lot."

He knew he was probably overreacting, getting his hopes up, thinking irrationally- al things he didn't think he'd ever do again. But here he was. Riddick bit back a vicious snarl, trying to remember that Vaako was really just doing his job and he wasn't intentionally trying to piss him off.

"Get her. Bring her to me."

Vaako almost turned to leave immediately upon hearing the order, but paused, suddenly curious. After a week of perfect inactivity, why has his lord suddenly so…animated?  
"Sir-"

"NOW."

That silenced any forthcoming questions, and Vaako quickly skittered out of the room, as if the sheer force of the command had shoved him. He gave one more questioning glance at the closed doors before making his way to where the wretched little stowaway was being held.

***

Riddick took off his goggles as soon as Vaako was gone, rubbing his eyes. Just like before, he paced, suddenly restless. Cagey, even. He was behaving the fool, and he knew it. There was just no way it could be her. After all, he had watched her die, heard that forever-disgusting sound of a few dozen blades sinking through fabric and flesh. She had slumped to the floor and bled all over him, dying even as he watched. There was really, positively, no way Jack could still be alive.

Which didn't stop him from hoping. He'd taught her everything she knew- how to stalk, how to be invisible…and quite a few of those curse words, too. It seemed so much like her, to attack so viciously, use the element of surprise to outweight the disadvantage of being small. So tactical of her!

But, he sighed aloud, replacing his goggles as he heard the commotion from down the hall, it wouldn't be her. He was just being an idiot, he thought.

Until he heard her voice, screaming and verbally battering everybody around her.

"HAY FUCKHEAD, LET ME GO! Where are you taking me, you slimy, corpsified, ass ugly little freaks?! As soon as I get out of this crap, your balls are MINE! MINE, you hear me? You LISTENING, you gross little fucks?!"

The Necromongers hauling her down the hallway were trying their damndest to be silent and stoic. And she was trying her damndest to hurt them in any manner possible, thrashing about and snapping at anybody who came too close.

He KNEW that voice, knew it better than anything else out in the 'Verse. Before Vaako could even open the chamber doors, he flung them wide, barely stopping to enjoy the sound of them cracking against the walls with enough force to dislodge some plaster. When he saw her, she was contorted in some ungodly way, mouth clamped onto the bicep of one of her guards, who was standing still, bleeding quietly. She let go of him and turned in the arms of her captors, breaking into a huge, bloody grin.

"Hey Riddick! Fancy meeting you here!"

He was silent for a little while, jaw hanging open rather uncharacteristically. Was there really anything…appropriate enough? How in the hells could he tell her how much he missed her without…sounding like a sap? He settled, at last, for:  
"Hey, Jack."

Vaako's expression would have been perfect, but Ridick didn't really notice.


	5. Chapter 4 Sushi

**…SUSHI…**

Riddick made sure he was schooling his expression into perfect neutrality during the meeting, even as his eyes slid shut under those dark goggles. After the very literal kick in the ass he had received from Jack- who was shockingly calm about the whole situation, all things considering- he had finally agreed upon an official meeting with the scores of Advisers, who all had something that demanded his immediate attention. And so here he was.

But damn, the meeting was boring. He had remained quiet throughout the proceedings, occasionally making a blunt 'suggestion' on this and that. Things like "should we go forward with the extermination of Helion Prime", and "There are still several hundred Breeders to be Purified and converted, my lord". He wouldn't be having any of that. Of course, he didn't exactly know WHAT they should be doing, instead…but in the meantime, leaving Helion Prime and all of it's residents alone. Preparations were being made, even as he sat there, dozing lightly.

Vaako was there too, of course- and don't think Riddick didn't notice the occasional stares he was receiving from the Commander. Really, the man was beginning to arouse suspicion- he was, after all, the next in command is something 'happened' to Riddick!

Riddick couldn't possibly know that, behind the constant staring and absent minded fidgeting, Vaako was actually thinking about when the last time his Lord Marshal could have eaten was. It had to have been quite some time- no wonder the man was dozing behind his goggles, as if Vaako didn't notice. There hadn't been any gruesome, bloody murders…or disappearances…or people missing chunks of flesh, recently. So it had to have been long before Riddick ever became involved with the Necromongers…perhaps even before they landed on Helion. Which was almost two weeks ago, now. Which meant, to Vaako, that his Lord Marshal must be staring at the lot of them as if they were a buffet, by now.

Which he was.

***

Jack sprawled on the massive, satin coated bed that she supposed Riddick had been in just hours ago. She was in the middle of a very intense staring battle with one of her hero's new pets- an aptly named Hellhound recently rescued from the abandoned Crematoria on Riddick's request. The Hellhound was currently winning, as the species actually only blinked once every few hours, and Jack had already done so thrice in the past minute, calling them flukes.

Other Hellhounds were draped about various furniture and rugs laid out especially for them and their armor-plated bodies. Already, the alpha female of the little pride had managed to destroy several innocent pillows, just by sitting on them. Not that Riddick cared- as far as he was concerned, they could do whatever and sleep wherever they pleased. As if anyone was going to stop them.

Jack gave up trying to 'intimidate' the Hellhound, sitting upright and contemplating the bed she was occupying. It was just…unneccesarily large. A leftover from the previous Lord Marshal, one of the few piece of furniture and décor that Riddick hadn't insited be removed. She looked over to the three Hellhounds comfortably destroying his sheets on the other side of the bed.

"It's an orgy bed, you know." She confided in them, as their ears perked up and all eyes swivelled to meet her, the sudden center of attention. "Yea, I mean, Riddick's huge…but this could fit like…all of you guys, plus Riddick, plus dinner, plus maybe that little fruitcake that hangs around all the time. Vaaka, or whatever. "

One of the Hellhound wormed closer to her, successfully destroying the sheets under its body, and shoved its thorny head under her arm. She had become rather fond of the beasts, and they happily accepted her into their pack, following Riddick's lead. She hardly got a color change or a scale rattle, these days…but woe betide anybody else that came into the back few rooms of Riddick's little compound.

The Hellhound she was scratching absently nudged her again, snuffling impatiently- they liked to be roughed a bit. In fact, the only way to clean their incredibly thick scales was with a steel wired brush Riddick had brought up- it was normally used to scrape caked on grease from engine parts. She obliged the creature, digging her short fingernails into the bits of skin uncovered when the scales were moved.

All day, while poor Riddick was confined to his little meeting, she had been flipping through the various channels of the ships security cameras, as if it were an entertainment broadcast. Mostly it was boring- the command center of the ship, perpetually busy…sometimes a small commotion in the soldier's barracks. Really, the Necromongers didn't show much emotion at all. Everything got done with a cold precision, with very little drama at all. The thing that fascinated her the most, though, was the process of Purifying that every Necro went through on an almost weekly basis. It seemed as if it were a shower, for them- several times she had watched a heated argument break out between two people, only to watch it end with them disappearing into the Purifyer's chamber, to reappear again as calm as ever…as though nothing had happened.

And if Purifying was a shower, then sex was like brushing your teeth, for them. Just constant, really. There seemed to be no taboo- and no discernment between the genders- for them. She supposed it was because they race simply couldn't reproduce…so why not just fuck constantly?

She accidently flipped to a particular camera, giving her waaaay too long a glimpse of a rather plump, old noble hilt-deep in some much younger woman.

"Aw sick. Look at that! Gaw, look!" She pointed at the holo-screen with the remote, and the Hellhounds obediantly turned to look at it, then back at her with their perpetually wide, glowing eyes. They seemed unaffected.

Suddenly all the jagged edged heads spun in the direction of the doors, where Riddick entered just a second later. He gave a brief glance at the holo screen before grabbing the remote, flicking it off, and tossing it aside. He, too, seemed unaffected. Jack left his bed, giving him room to sit at it's edge and remove his goggles, absently placing them atop the head of the nearest Hellhound. It was silent for all of thirty seconds before Jack spoke up.

"Yanno…these guys are like zombies, sort of." She ignored the slant eyed look she was getting from Riddick and went on, "I mean like….really horny, mean zombies. Except they don't eat brains, but I mean…totally just as scary. And they have those neck things."

"Jack…I have no idea what you're talking about. Where do you pick up this shit?" Jack simply shrugged and flopped down on the bed next to her "Big Bad".

***

She had, at first, been rather angry with him. He had resorted to placating her with a huge dinner in his rooms, but of course she swerved back on topic after a very unladylike burp. As soon as she was finished, Riddick dismissed Vaako who had been, of course, very confounded at the whole situation. He wanted to ask his Lord Marshal about 300 questions, and seemed on the verge of doing so…but was bodily removed from the rooms. He'd get over it.

Jack had not asked how everything had happened, or if Riddick was alright, first….she had not wondered why Riddick was suddenly King of the Dead-ish People, or admonished him for loosing track of her during the initial invasion. No, Jack's first concern was why, instead of eating her, Riddick had frozen Kyra's body.

After all, he had fully believed the young, unfortunate woman to be Jack- they did, admittedly, look stunningly alike. Forget the fact that Jack had kept a very short haircut, and the imposter clearly had a long, flowing mane. Who knew what….dastardly things the Necromongers were capable of?

After being (literally) squeezed for information, Vaako had revealed the whole scheme to the Lord Marshal- the young woman had been mistakenly picked up, thought to be the young woman so loved by Riddick, revealed by the psychic Quasi-Dead. Of course she protested, and was subdued and converted, in the hopes that it would damage the fearsome Furyan.

Jack, for her part, had stayed hidden with Imam's wife and little girl, bringing them to the undeground lair that had served as Riddick's home for the past five years. They were safe there, and no Necromongers found them….though a few had found the cats, and that said beasts were incredibly vicious and seemed to crave human flesh, for some odd reason.

When Jack learned of Riddick's sudden plan to stop the Necromongers, she had, at first, denied it. Riddick wouldn't have done something so rash! But, as usual, she underestimated her friend. And when he disappeared into the Legion ship, so had she, slipping in much the same way he had and hiding in the most unused spot, waiting for an opportunity to strike.

He had taught her very well.

And when she finally met up with him again, in his private chambers and much to his shock, she went ahead and hugged him, anyways.

But, of course, she had wanted to know why he hadn't done as promised! Why, after that half-hearted vow almost five years ago, he hadn't "Eaten her, as, like, the best tribute ever. Except for the face".

Riddick hadn't known how to answer that, exactly.

***

And now here they were, all that mess put behind them, and the body of 'Kyra' shot into space with very little ceremony.

Riddick massaged his temples as Jack gave the Hellhound nearby a good grooming, dislodging caked on blood and dirt from the creature onto his bed. Yes, it was good to have her back. And, of course, she broke the temporary silence again, giving him a small prod that, were it any other person, would have caused a sudden loss of limb.

"Hey Big Bad. Not looking so good these days. When's the last time you ate?" She sat up and peered at him worriedly as he paused to consider the question. He seemed to slump a bit, letting out a tired sigh.

"I…dunno, Jack. S'been a while." He left it at that, gently pushign her out of the way before lying back into the incredibly soft bed. The Hellhounds immediately collected around him, like a living, not-so-comfortable barrier against the world. They were well-meaning, anyway.

"Pff, no wonder. They would probably be like…sushi, or something," Jack stood and stretched, once again turning on the holo-screen as Riddick wondered what the hell 'sushi' was, "I mean, you know. Cold and rubbery, like fish that hasn't been cooked right. Dead. Gross."

She flipped to one of the cameras displaying the outside of the doors to one of the numerous Purifying chambers in the ship, just as three expressionless Necromongers left it.

"I think it's all this….Purifying they do, Riddick. C'mere, look." Reluctantly, Riddick left the bed to stand beside Jack who, despite all examples of the contrary, often had good advice. "Look. I think it sort of…puts their bodies in cold storage, you know? It keeps them from feeling anything, even most kinds of pain-" She stopped and grinned, remembering Vaako's wonderful reaction to her vicious attack on his manhood, "-Keeps them from behaving like most humans do…They have to feel…set apart from them. I wouldn't want to eat that, either."

She glanced to side to see if Riddick had anything to say about her brilliant comparison. Riddick was watching the screen, as a dark skinned woman entered the chamber, stalking stiff leggedly as if quite upset. She left a few minutes later, almost in a daze. Her eyes were blank and her limbs relaxed, and she let herself drift off into another hallway, not seeming to notice the small spots of blood she was leaving behind her from the freshly opened scars on her neck.

Riddick considered it for a moment and decided that no, he would not like to eat that. He wasn't a scavenger. He quietly took the remote receiver from Jack and, after examining it for a few moments, found the correct button- somewhere across the ship, Vaako was being very loudly paged. It was a very loud sound in his ear, one that he had sincerely hoped never to hear again from the Lord Marshal's chambers. But he obeyed, abandoning his inspection of the current flight data to go attend to his Lord. He would be lying if he had said he wasn't just a tiny bit nervous.

***

It was one of the rare times he was permitted to see Riddick's oddly shining eyes, reflecting any dim light in the room. Currently, images from the holo-screen played across them like tiny mirrors, and Vaako knew he was staring entirely too obviously. It took a few seconds for Vaako to realize that the Lord Marshal was speaking to him directly, and he tore his gaze away, examining the screen at which was being pointed.

"Vaako. Tell me why you people Purify." Riddick's voice was, as always, a quite growl, but Vaako found himself a bit startled anyways. He straightened up, shoving all other thoughts away. It was a perfectly valid question.

"Well, my lord, it's a simple ritual involving the Quasi-Dead. The original wounds we received at the time of our conversion- our rebirth, if you will- are reopened and the blood drained-"

"I didn't ask how, Vaako." Riddick quieted a few of the growling Hellhounds with a wave of his hand. The beast strolled over anyways, flanking him and staring at Vaako almost…hungrily. Vaako closed his mouth quietly and thought for a moment. There were, fo course, the obvious physical 'benefits' of the ritual, but he had a sinking feeling that wasn't what Riddick was interested in. He tried for it anyways.

"I…we experience a dulling of all pains, my lord, and of course a removal of human-like emotions. It also calms the nerves and-" He was once again cut off and Riddick silently narrowed his eyes and gave him a look at, very clearly, said 'I know you aren't an idiot, now answer the fucking question'. Vaako sighed and folded his arms across his chest, conceding defeat.

"I don't know, my lord. We've just…always done it."

That finally seemed to satisfy Riddick, and the Lord Marshal took his gaze from Vaako for a little while, again watching the holo-screen. For the first time, Vaako noticed Jack hovering around behind the Hellhounds, watching him with a very keen interest. She gave him one smug little smile, just before Riddick declared:

"Great. I want you- all of you- to stop it. Stop…Purifying. In fact, I want those Quasi-Dead…removed." He nodded once, turning off the holo-screen and sparing Vaako a glance. A small smile played about on his face at the dawning expression of horror on Vaako's. The man's arms came down to hang limpy at his sides, his jaw slightly ajar. It was incredibly undignified. Hilarious, even.

It took a few minutes for Vaako to recover and another few to realize that his Lord Marshal was not joking. His jaw clicked shut.

"My…my lord, really this is not a good course of action. I really, REALLY must advise against it. I…it is just…ridiculous-"

It was time, Riddick decided, to exert some of his recently aquired power. He strode forward, the Hellhounds shadowing him, scales clattering ominously. Vaako, to his credit, refused to back away, even when the Lord Marshal was just about a foot away, eyes boring silver lined holes straight into his skull so his brains could leak out.

"Are you questioning my…judgement?" He all but snarled, secretly taking a tiny bit of pleasure from being able to say anything with actual authority. Vaako still didn't back away, even managing to summon the brass balls necessary to refute.

"No, my Lord. I think perhaps you should consider another possibility, or…" He trailed off as Riddick sidled even closer to the man- Vaako ALMOST shrank away this time, feeling the warm breath ghosting across his face.

"You think I should reconsider? Do you also think I shouldn't be in command?" Riddick did snarl this time, any amusement fading rapidly. Vaako paled a bit, actually leaning away from the man, feet still rotted in place.

"N-no, my lord. I really just-"

"Don't 'really just' anything." Riddick snapped.

From across the room, Jack was thinking the whole process looked very much like a tango. A dangerous tango, accompanied by the Mariachi band of Hellhounds growling and rattling and hissing.

Vaako knew he had lost the argument as soon as it started, but he seemed to be buying his brain time to wrap around the concept of cutting off all Purifying. It was sick, it was cruel, it was a punishment, it was totally uncalled for, it was…

It suddenly hit him, then, and he finally backed off a couple steps, which seemed to pacify Riddick. The Hellhounds, sensing the sudden change, backed off as well, some even turning to go back to sleep. Almost as a little reminder, though, the Alpha Male stayed by Riddick's side, spines splayed out and displaying a hint of red.

"My lord…I.." He paused, considering his next words very carefully, leaning back against the door behind him. "I know it has been…some time since you've….eaten." He left it as a question, part of anticipating being his lord's next meal. What a way to go.

It set Riddick back on his heels, and his first instinct was to quickly eliminate the second person to know about his little 'secret'- for that was exactly what Vaako had meant. Clever man, seeing through his unusual commands so quickly. Suddenly Jack was behind him, one hand gingerly touching a broad shoulder.

"Hey Riddick…I think it's ok. If he was going to snitch, he would have done it by now, right?" Jack murmured, effectively ending any thoughts the predatory man had about taking Vaako's throat out. Jack gave good advice. He trusted her- but still.

In one quick stride, he was pressing Vaako up against the door, one large hand almost squeezing the air out of the First Commander's lungs. From this close, all Vaako could see were the man's eyes- they may have been expressionless, but there was a deep ferocity about them, now.

"You go give those orders, Vaako. And if you tell a soul, I'm taking your liver out." It was just two sentences, but it was two very well said and well accentuated sentences. Vaako got the point, between the very real threat, the weight on his chest, and the sickeningly pinning gaze he was under. And all at once, it was gone. Riddick turned away from him, leaving him flattened up against the door. Vaako remained so still for so long, one of the Hellhounds wandered over to sniff at his leg. That jerked him out of his miniature panic attack. Riddick still had his back to him…and Vaako quite suddenly realized the huge amount of trust the Lord Marshal had just placed in him. Something even the previous Lord had failed to do, which had, ultimately, been his downfall. Vaako understood, then, that the fiercely unpredictable man before him…may just be more fit to rule. He cleared his throat, startling the Hellhound away from him with a little growl.

"…Yes, sir." And he was gone before Riddick could turn around.


	6. Chapter 5 Do You Have Dinner Plans?

**…DO YOU HAVE DINNER PLANS?...**

He had been stalking through the halls towards the command center of the Legion ship, carrying an armful of papers he'd found stacked neatly atop his bed- he was nobody's secretary, and he meant to accentuate that point by 'neatly stacking' the papers atop the nearest Adviser's head. The deeply unpleasent sound stopped him in his tracks so effeciently, the top foot of papers flew several feet in front of him.

It was a sound Vaako hadn't heard in many, many years. And when his stomach growled again, painfully loud, the only strange looks he got from the other people in the hallways were looks of sympathy. It had been just over a week since the Lord Marshal's decree that all Purifying should be stopped. On his direct orders, even Quasi-Dead had been removed-It had earned the Lord Marshal quite a lot of disfavor. There had even been one violent assassination attempt- and all complaining stopped after the would-have-been assassin, and everybody else in the room, had seen the man's internal organs all over the floor.

Already, Vaako was experiencing the disgusting bodily functions of humans- first he managed to burn himself by standing far too close to a decorative bowl of fire….and then of course, there was the Legion-wide demand that the heat in the ship be turned up, because it was bloody cold in space. And now, here he was, hungry- for the first time in at least twenty years.

Vaako silently cursed his Lord, not bothering to pick up the spilled papers- he took just a few steps, then took back his curse…as if the Lord Marshal could hear him. After all, every other Necromonger was experiencing the exact same things as he- and if he could not remain loyal to the Lord Marshal…then who would? He sighed and continued on his way to make a loud, grumpy point. Some terribly unlucky Adviser would be rather surprised to find that a person COULD get papercuts on their face. And that they hurt quite a bit.

***

Much later in the day, Vaako finally wound up in his Lord Marshal's rooms, ready to dutifully- exhaustedly- report the day's events. Not that there had been, but routine was…comfortable. By this point in the day, Vaako had eaten and wrapped the few tiny wounds he had begun to notice kept appearing every time his Dame was angry with him. It had taken a few more hours before he realized they were, in fact, claw-marks.

He found Riddick lounging quietly, browsing through something undoubtedly fascinating on a hand held viewing screen. Jack was, mercifully, nowhere to be seen. And the Hellhounds were rapidly becoming used to his presence- only a few of them growled and reddened menacingly, this time. He ignored them, pushing past on his way to Riddick, who hadn't yet looked up. Clearly, he didn't care. That didn't stop Vaako from his duties, though.

"My lord, I hope you are well today," Truly, Vaako hated the bowing and scraping more than anything else in his day, "If I might have just a moment of your time, then you can go back to…whatever it is you were doing. Sir, I have the reports of the day and-"

"No. Give me just a sec, skinny." Riddick mumbled, clearly quite absorbed in his data pad. Vaako was left standing, still half-bowed, mouth ajar. The surprise written plainly across his face was punctuated by another loud rumble from his stomach. It seemed that being interrupted was becoming a daily ritual for Vaako- not that he could complain too much. If ANYTHING was going to remove him from his duties as the Lord Marshal's personal secretary…so much the better.

Finally, after it became clear that Vaako really was just going to have to wait until Riddick was finished, he straightened and leaned, ever so slightly, on the long table his Lord was seated at. When is seemed that the man didn't mind, Vaako put more weight into his lean; It was also the first time in quite a while that he had felt truly exhausted. The table gave one tiny squeak- all Hellhounds looked up abruptly as if someone had shouted in the perfectly silent room- and Riddick cast a brief glance up at his Commander. One solid leg came off its perch at the edge of the table and disappeared under it, to shove the chair directly opposite out a few feet- an invitation to sit, albeit a rather rude one.

Vaako considered it a moment, then sighed and slumped into the chair, not taking his eyes off Riddick, who had gone back to ignoring the man. Their interactions often went this course; Vaako wondered if anything he said actually registered in his Lord Marshal's brain. Across the room, a couple of smaller Hellhounds got into a noisy, ungainly scrap over a shredded piece of cloth. Riddick let it continue for a few seconds, until one of the beasts lost a scale a yelped, instantly turned a bright carmine red at the other- at which point Riddick sighed, put down his data pad, and went to break up the messy affair. When both creatures were properly admonished- as if they were particularly vicious, wicked children- He came back and FINALLY gave Vaako more than a cursory glance.

"I have a new job for you." Vaako couldn't tell if he was being stared at or not, but he straightened up at the news- there couldn't be any jobs worse than this, after all. Riddick continued, seeing the slight interest. "I'm not stupid- I can see how pissed you people are about having to ditch the psycho psychics. Can't imagine that's made me too popular?"

He left it as a question on purpose, and, after a brief moment, Vaako shook his head in agreement. He was, somehow, still hungry. Even after dinner.

"Thought so." Riddick leaned back and pushed his goggles up onto his forehead eying Vaako directly. "I need someone to…find the people who are the angriest at me. People who might be…disloyal. Who might be doing illegal things. People who think they might make a better Lord Marshal. Maybe there are even some people who've been Purifying against orders…I have a feeling we didn't managed to get all the creepy little fuckers out of here." He was, of course, talking about the Quasi-Dead. "I need to find anybody like that, got it? When you do, come to me with names, maybe descriptions. Anybody who might be a threat- excepting yourself."

Vaako opened his mouth, about to say that he WASN'T a threat- but of course, that just wasn't true. If Riddick ever became completely unfit to lead, Vaako would make sure that he was…replaced. It was the Necromonger way, and Riddick knew it. He leaned back in his chair a bit, once again analyzing his leader. So far, the man hadn't followed any known convention of the Necromonger way. He had made enemies at every turn, and hadn't given them a proper alternative. The only reason Vaako continued to have any shred of faith in the man's leadership skills was because he knew that, behind that brutish exterior, Riddick was twice the man the previous Lord Marshal had been. Vaako might not know what his exact plans for the future were- but he knew he HAD them, which was more than could be said about a lot of Necromongers.

He met eye-to-eye with the powerful man across from him and nodded. "Yes, my lord. I think that's wise. Now, do you have anyone in mind for the position-" And, yet again, he was cut off.

"Cut the bullshit, Vaako. Let me make this clear to you. I'm not doing this because I'm afraid of being displaced, or of what people might think of my decision making, got it? They have no idea what's in store." He leaned forward suddenly, placing both elbows on the table and giving Vaako the most wry grin he'd ever seen out of the man. "Now, I'll make you a deal. I know you fucking hate being my patsy, so you can have this job. And in return, you gotta stop the…constant patronizing and bowing and crap. I don't like it." As if suddenly aware of how unusual that sounded, coming from him, Riddick added on, "I don't like being able to see your face and hands, all the time."

Which was, of course, complete crap.

"Sir…" Vaako cleared his throat and carefully phrased it as directly as possible- ever one to obey commands, especially if they suited his needs just as well, "Sir, if you don't care what people are doing and saying behind your back…then why give me the job of finding the disloyal ones? I mean, if…"

He trailed off as one of the two Hellhounds that had been fighting earlier wandered over and place its square head on Riddick's lap, depositing a gift- the torn, unrecognizable piece of cloth it had clearly won. Riddick gave it a pat and accepted the 'present', holding it up for Vaako to see. It was, at first glance, just a chewed up, slobbery pair of pants. But when Riddick obligingly turned up the lights a bit, Vaako noticed a few key features that made him lean back just a bit. One, the pants were very clearly soldier issue, complete with an isignia that belonged to the Lensor class. Two, they were absolutely covered in dried blood.

"…Oh." Vaako swallowed hard, and Riddick turned down the lights, tossing the chew toy back to the adolescent Hellhounds, who immediately went back to tearing it to pieces. He gave his Commander a pointed stare and, as if on cue, Vaako's stomach gave one more tiny sound of hunger. "Oh…sir, that's. Uh."

"Disgusting, I know. Just do it." Riddick finished for him with a smirk, settling his goggles back over his eyes. After a moment, Vaako nodded. He didn't know why he was so readily agreeing to his new job- but anything was better than being the Lord Marshal's personal secretary, after all. Now he was the chef.

***

He was almost surprised at his Lord's efficiency. Just days after their meeting, and only hours after Vaako had reported one of the noble females who had fresh Purifying wounds, she had mysteriously vanished. No blood had been found in the half-hearted investigation. When he visited Riddick later in the evening, he had found his Lord's mood vastly improved, along with a healthy color returning to his skin.

The same two Hellhounds were playing with a piece of lace, somehow managing to delicately pick it apart, thread by thread, with their impossibly sharp fangs. Riddick greeted him with rather smug smile, and Jack outright grinned.

"Sir….I think perhaps you should be more…discreet about what your hounds…play with." Vaako gave a small nod to the large pile of lacey threads the Hellhounds had amassed, "If anybody else were to come in here….well. I just don't think it's a good idea." He cleared his throat and quickly squeezed his eyes shut as one of the massive beasts promptly threw up a finger onto the pile of lace.

Riddick glanced over his shoulder at the satisfied little pack of Hellhounds, each one of them with blood and bits of shredded cloth or meat dripping off the short spines on their faces. Personally, he found it rather endearing, as long as they stayed off his bed. But he did see Vaako's point.

"Yea…probably a good idea. Hey!" He abruptly shouted at the pair of beasts who had been destroying the lacey garments- Vaako jumped a bit, and Jack giggled at him. He shot her a withering scowl. "Hey, you two. C'mere. Bring that crap with you. C'mon."

Obediently, the two young Hellhounds slunk over, heads hung low, dragging their "kill" behind them- it was a spit and blood covered lacy undergarment. Riddick held out his head in front of them, and, reluctantly, they dropped the disgusting wad of shredded fabric into his open palm. Including the finger. Without so much as batting an eye, Riddick scowled and pocketed the horrible mess, to dispose of later. Still scowling, almost comically, he pointed back to the corner where the two had been playing. They slithered away, bellies almost touching the ground in 'shame'.

Vaako almost gagged a little- his Lord had a finger sticking out of his goddamn pocket- but held it back long enough for a curt nod and a forced smile…before turning and rushing out of Riddick's rooms.

And inside, Riddick turned and gave Jack a lopsided grin, which Jack returned by tossing a pillow at him.

"God, you're disgusting! I think you gave that poor sucker a heart attack." She was laughing, though.

***

Outside, Vaako choked back his dinner and pretended nothing at all was wrong.


	7. Chapter 6 SemiPeaceful Interlude

**A/N: Hey everybody! Sorry about the little delay! I just had arm surgery on Monday...But expect a few new chapters up in the next few days!! Also- thanks to all my readers and reviewers!!!**

The day he had discovered the blood caked weaponry in the Lord Marshal's chambers was the day he went against everything the Necromonger faith had drilled into since he was just a child. The Second Commander had been waiting for a private meeting with his Lord which, according to First Commander Vaako, was of deathly importance. The Lord Marshal had kept him waiting in the outer chambers, though- and out of boredom, the man had found himself peering into some of the darkest shadows of the room.

He had found the tools of butchery hidden away under a floor plate that rattled when he stepped on it. The Second Commander was an intelligent man, and had served under the previous Lord Marshal long before Vaako had even been Converted- so when he pieced together the disappearances with the bloody tools in his Lord Marshal's chambers, he knew that something had to be done.

He had quickly replaced the plate, once again covering up the sickening weapons, as both the Lord Marshal and Commander Vaako entered, clearly ready to begin the little meeting. He hadn't heard a word of it, of course, mind too busy roiling over the rapid conclusions he had come to. Vaako was most certainly unaware of what was transpiring under his nose- the Second Commander had a great respect for Vaako, and if his higher up had had ANY idea of the butchery taking place next door, something would have been done already.

Clearly, the Lord Marshal was little more than a sick animal. All Furyans were, no doubt- the Second Commander remembered the previous Lord Marshal's attempts to convert the beasts- always, they either died form the enforced starvation, or rebelled and lashed out against their saviors. The filthy mongrels simply had to be put down, there had been no other way. And the new Lord Marshal, he could see now, was no exception.

It took him a a few more hours into that wretched day to realize what great danger Vaako was in. He had, of course, heard stories of the Furyan beasts toying with their prey before the slaughter- clearly, the First Commander was next on the horrible menu. He had no idea! He stood by the Furyan, not seeing anything beyond his timely promotion and the Lord's clear favoring of him. Like an innocent child, trying to befriend the rabid dog.

Then, of course, was when the Second Commander knew he would have to put the Furyan down. There was no other option- everyone's lives were in danger as long as the creature lived. He liked to think he was doing it for Vaako.

***

Riddick had noticed an odd manor about the Second Commander, the first time he'd officially met him. He'd even asked Vaako about the man- but Vaako assured him the man was perfectly loyal, simply a little awed by his presence. Riddick trusted his judgment on the matter, and let it be.

He had grown to like the smaller, fiercely independent Vaako. The man was loyal to a fault, yes, but he was also one of the few people unafraid to give him his own opinion. It had proven invaluable over the past few weeks, as Riddick worked the vast changes on the Necromonger society. If there was one thing Vaako understood better than anybody else, it was the workings of Riddick's "followers".

And now that he was fed on a regular basis, he found himself much more capable of bearing down like a Lord Marshal should. The end of all Purifying had only been the beginning, of course! Riddick found himself even a little excited over the future prospects of his title- and of course, Vaako always seemed to be there, keeping things in perspective for him.

Just before the meeting with the Second Commander, Riddick had even managed to convince Vaako to hold a piece of his latest kill while he prepared lunch. If ever there was a time when Riddick was content, it was now. And Vaako seemed to be enjoying his position as well- despite the odd hours and occasional messes he had to clean up. Literally and figuratively. Riddick found he enjoyed watching the First Commander- quite an odd realization, for the once stoically solitary Furyan. Yes, things were changing.

And for Vaako, too. He had grown to enjoy his time advising and helping his Lord Marshal- Riddick, as he'd been instructed to call him, from now on. He was bothered less and less by the occasional bloody mess he walked in on. And of course, anything was better than staying in his own rooms to be constantly harassed by his Dame. He was fairly certain the woman had tired of him and simply kept him around to enjoy her elevated status as First Commander's Dame. Oh well. He only kept her around because she was very pleasant on the eye.

***

When Riddick was happy, Jack was happy. Actually, Jack was just always happy. But seeing her Big Bad keeping someone else's company for a change was just so thrilling. Oh, and it freed her up to go keep some company of her own.

She had become a regular fixture in the Central Control Room. Most of the Necros just ignored her unless she asked a direct question. She had a feeling everyone was still reeling from the lack of Purifying. Suddenly, people realized they couldn't physically stay up for days on end, and that they had to take lunch breaks, and that sex was about twenty times more fun now that they could FEEL things. It was hilarious.

She couldn't give a rat's ass about the controlling of the ship- the reason she came so often was to see the Second Captain. Oh yes, the Second Captain. The Second Captain, who, like everybody, was still defrosting and failed to notice any flirtations or smiles or jokes. Even Vaako, she thought, was less of a stiff than her little crush.

But the man really was charming. Unbearably shy, at times- though compared to Jack, everyone was shy. She tried to woo him anyways, using all of her…womanly wiles. The first time she got a smile out of him was when she had carried a baby Hellhound down to the Bridge with her and let it run underfoot. It had been a really grand day, in her opinion.

Riddick, of course, managed to terrify the poor man, even on his good days. She knew her big hero tended to think the Second Captain was an idiot- he always turned into a stuttering, mumbling, shivering, clumsy little shadow every time he was around. Really, he wasn't that terrifying! She had even managed to convince Riddick to smile once in a while when around the poor Captain- it only seemed to scare the man even more.

She just couldn't fathom why.

***

Things were changing aboard the ship- and quite rapidly. Riddick finally seemed to be taking the reins- and he couldn't do it without Vaako's unyeilding help. And Jack was finding her own little niche- for once without much help from her Big Bad. And the Second Captain was going to have a heart attack once of these days. And the Second Commander was going to mess everything up.


	8. Chapter 7 The Lights Come On

** Second chapter of the day! This one is a big, important, action-filled one. Unlike the last one, which was full of blah blah blah. Anyways- read, review, and enjoy!**

Vaako had given him another tip that morning. Some guy had been forcing his wife to Purify, dragging her kicking and screaming in to see one of the few remaining illegal Quasis. And after she had been subdued, he could use her however he wanted. That didn't sit right with Riddick.

And so now he was crouched in the deep black of the ship's night cycle. It was blissfully silent for most people, but Riddick kept picking up minute sounds- the creaks and groans of the ship, breathing. It was, dare he say it, peaceful.

Forget the fact that he was currently crouched directly behind the rather plump, sweaty man. Had it been a bit brighter in the halls, perhaps some lingering light would catch on Riddick's eyes, perfect circles made of glass. But it wasn't- it was pitch black, and his prey was alone.

Riddick crept forward just a bit more, readying the short stiletto he used for his plumper victims in one hand- one quick, powerful jab to the base of the skull would do it. Very little blood, if any. Riddick didn't exactly like his prey to have quite so much meat on the bones- but the man disgusted him. Even now, he was waiting outside the Purifying chamber, tucked away behind a thick column. He was sweating profusely, and Riddick could smell the perverse arousal dripping off the man as he waited for his wife to become the docile little toy he enjoyed so much.

Riddick slunk closer and stood, completely silent. At this point in the hunt, the smell was so thick he had to hold his breath- the pudgy little fuck was truly disgusting…and Riddick didn't get to say that often enough, being who he was.

He raised the long stiletto and leveled it perfectly, so close he was almost touching the back of the man's neck. It was a wonder his prey couldn't sense him, by now. Riddick brought the knife back a few inches, giving him enough room to strike with enough force to sever the spinal column from the base of the skull- it was much too quick a death for the little bastard. But it needed to be done quickly, so Riddick tensed and lashed out-

-he was barely able to graze the surface of the skin before the hallway flooded with brilliant white light. It was almost a physical blow, searingly painful to his incredibly sensitive eyes. Roaring, Riddick dropped the stiletto and clamped on hand over his eyes, trying desperately to shut out the ungodly pain. The overhead lights flickered maddeningly- they hadn't been used, recently.

And the prey- the sickening, sweaty little wad of blubber, yelped and spun around, just as startled by the light as he was by the sight of his Lord Marshal, snarling just behind him. Almost on instinct, Riddick whipped his free hand out, raking blunt nails across the pudgy little man's wide eyes. At this point, he was really running almost entirely on instinct, anyways.

The little man turned and ran with a cry of terror, slipping and skidding in a frantic effort to _get away_ from the powerful predator behind him. Riddick found himself giving chase, blindly tearing off after HIS meal, one hand still shielding his eyes from the nauseating light. He could feel the man, always just out of his reach, stumbling ahead of him, eyes saucer-wide.

The stench of pure fear rolling off the prey in waves was enough to keep Riddick on his heels- it was one of the very few times he truly lost control of himself. Later, he would find a way to be ashamed of himself- but for now, he was all raging animal, thundering after the fat, weak little man.

And just as suddenly as they went on- the lights snapped off again, and Riddick skidded to an immediately halt, eyes flying open just in time to see- through the spots dancing around his head- the terrified little rat go crashing over a railing with a horrible wail. It ended abruptly and Riddick, still skidding on the slick floor, stopped himself on railing with a painful _whok_. He shook his head, rumbling lowly, and peered over the railing. The rotund little mess was sliding down the tip of the spear held by one of the massive statues in the hallway below them, inch by inch. Even in the dark, Riddick could see the man's face, frozen in utter shock as his body slowly oozed down the spear.

Riddick backed off a few steps, panting raggedly in an effort to calm himself. The last time he had lost himself so fully in the uncontrollable rage that was the Furyan instinct, he had been taking Johns apart. The first time they had met.

Shaking his head, as if suddenly realizing just how terrible this would look had there been anyone around to see it, he turned and stalked off briskly. He was certain there had been no one else in the hallway with him and the fat man, and yet things had gone terribly wrong, anyways. He never let things go terribly wrong. And even a hunter like Riddick would not have let anyone die quite the same way the fat little wretch had- slowly, choking on his own blood and offal. It was sick.

He would have to eat leftovers, tonight- but that didn't bother him as much as it normally would have. He needed to ask Vaako if the ship was capable of malfunctioning the way it seemingly had, just now.

***

The next morning, Vaako found his Lord Marshal in a toweringly foul mood- to the point that even Jack seemed to be avoiding the man. Several times, she had tried to calm Riddick- and finally gave up when he snapped at her, knocking her hand off his shoulder and storming away for a hot bath.

And so Vaako bore the brunt of it when he came to see his Lord. He had heard- and seen- about the boyd found earlier that morning. By that point, gravity had taken full effect on the broken corpse- it had simply ripped in two and fallen to the ground. But the blood slicked spear held by the statue of one of the first Lord Marshals had told the full story. The Dame had identified the body, even as numbed as she was by her recent Purification- it was a gruesome sight to handle.

And Vaako was left to wonder why the traitorous little scumbag hadn't just "disappeared" like the rest of them. He sat in a large, luxuriously plush chair in Riddick's innermost rooms, waiting for the volatile man to reemerge from the baths. Jack was nearby, busy trying to calm the rattled Hellhounds, who were, of course, picking up on their Master's mood. The youngest of the beasts- a very young little cub, born aboard the ship, had crawled onto Vaako's lap and wedged itself between him and the arm of the chair. It would have been painful, had the little creature not been as young and small as it was. Vaako petted it absently, staring at the bathroom door as if it had answers.

***

Inside, Riddick was not sulking. He wasn't even really taking a bath. He was sprawled out on the cool tiles, massaging his eyes- still unbearably sore after last night's encounter with the ship's lights. He could hear Vaako and Jack outside, talking quietly, and the occasional low rumble from one of his Hellhounds. The Alpha Male had stationed himself directly outside the bathroom door, and if Riddick glanced over, he could see the beast's nose jammed under the frame, snuffling around in search of him. It was when the Hellhound pup came over and shoved its comparably tiny feet under the door, scrabbling around and whining, that he knew it was time to get up.

When he opened the door inwardly, the little Hellhound pup swung in with it, backwards facing scales caught under the doorframe comically. It was a bit of humor in his otherwise pretty shitty day. Riddick dislodged the little cub and scooped it off the ground- he deposited it in Jack's lap and shooed Vaako out of his favorite chair, unceremoniously flopping down in it with a sigh. Jack was not the only one to notice that Riddick seemed a bit reluctant to open his eyes.

After a few moments of oddly charged silence, Riddick finally growled, "What, Vaako?"

Vaako had been watching his Lord carefully- it couldn't be helped. The man looked rather…well, awful. And Vaako felt he needed to know why…and somehow, he would be better at finding out than Jack had been.

"My L-…Riddick. There's been a bit of activity this morning." He was worming around the subject, noting the elevated aggression in the Hellhounds, "I thought perhaps you should hear about it."

Riddick opened his eyes just a bit, small slivers of silver peering at Vaako through his fingers. The First Commander was deeply uncomfortable.

"Riddick…it isn't…like you, to kill them like that." Vaako glanced at the door as if someone could somehow be listening. He frowned when Riddick snapped-

"I DIDN'T." Riddick sighed, the sound coming out almost as a growl, as usual, and slumped back into his chair. "He fell."

"Well, it still isn't like you! I know what that man was doing was against your commands- not to mention more than a little perverted- but that was a terrible death. And you could have at least paged me, let me know so I didn't have to wake up to that lovely little surprise!" Vaako crossed his arms over his chest, giving his Lord a rather bold glare. A few of the Hellhounds rattled their scales at him, and he chose to ignore it. "Besides that, the Captain said someone broke into the control room- and I KNOW it was you! The door had been slammed in, Riddick. Really, could you be any less subtle?"

There was a very brief silence in which Jack had time to glance from Vaako to Riddick and back again- before Riddick surged forward, knocking his chair backwards. Instantly, Vaako was coated in a swarm of clicking, snarling red Hellhounds, who dragged him to the ground by his armor and pinned him in place. It all happened so fast, Vaako barely had time to gasp before Riddick was looming over him. Distantly, he heard Jack give Riddick a verbal berating that was surely ignored. He had trouble focusing his vision on the Lord Marshal's snarling face, finding it much less painful to simply stare at the center of his chest. One of the Hellhounds had clamped onto his neck and was, very effectively, holding him completely still.

"What do you know, Vaako. And WHO did you tell?" Riddick's voice was sickeningly low. For a second, Vaako's mind raced, unable to grasp what he was being accused of. When he finally found his voice, Riddick shoved the Hellhound off his throat long enough for him to speak.

"Riddick- I really. I really have no idea. The door." He gasped, struggling for a moment furiously as one of the Hellhounds bit down just a tad too hard. "Get them OFF!"

"The door." Riddick prompted, giving the Hellhound that was trying to take Vaako's leg off a rough smack- it reluctantly let go. Vaako once again tried to fight his vicious captors, rising up off the ground until he hit a toothy resistance- he gave up and slumped back down to the floor, staring straight up at Riddick. Truly, he didn't understand the sudden, frightening change. But he knew he was going to become a steak if he didn't spill it, soon.

"Riddick…I..I told the Second Captain. Of the Ship. I told him…about you. What you eat." He gave a little yell as Riddick was suddenly on him, knife whipping out of nowhere and poised to take his face off.

"You…WHAT." Riddick, at this point, could feel Jack trying to tug him off the prone body of his First Commander. He swatted her away, biting the knife just a little more into the soft skin at Vaako's jaw.

"Ow- I…I trust him, Riddick. He is always loyal to you. Always. A little shy, maybe, but- OW. But he wouldn't do anything to jeopardize your command. I swear it." Vaako tried to lean away from the blade, but Riddick held him firmly in place. He managed to look up long enough to stare at the man's ghostly eyes, hovering just a few inches away. "I wouldn't, either. Hn. Ow. It wasn't him. We've….we've been friends since I got here." He could feel a generous amount of blood slipping across his neck and throat, and he sighed, giving up the struggle and giving Riddick a cross stare- if he was going to die, he was going to let his killer know he wasn't terribly happy about it.

Again, it was silent- save for the low rattling and rumbling form the Hellhounds. And then the pressure on his face was gone. Riddick withdrew the knife, but kept a firm hold on Vaako's face, drawing back to look at the man cooly. He cast a brief glance over his shoulder at Jack, who was hovering close by, with a iron rod in hand, clearly ready to beat him senseless. He gave her a glare, and she gently set the poker down on his bed.

"Jack. Second Captain's the stuttery one, right?" He murmured, once she had discarded the weapon. She nodded, coming to stand next to him and peer over HIS should at poor Vaako. Vaako swallowed thickly, still jammed up under Riddick's hand. "Ok. So he ain't stupid, then. He's just pants pissing terrified of me?" She nodded again, once again trying to pull the powerful man off Vaako- who was tolerating it all the best he could.

After a moment of staring directly at the man lodged underneath him, Riddick low one long, low sigh and got up, batting the Hellhounds aside as well. Vaako law prone on the floor for a moment, quietly making sure he was in one piece, before he was suddenly yanked up off the ground and set on his feet. He once again found himself eye-to-eye with Riddick, who had him by the collar of his chest armor.

"Vaako. You listen to me, right. Now. You tell anybody else, and I'm going to make sure they don't find your body in a trash chute…they'll find it in several trash chutes. Got it?" He snarled, and let go of Vaako, taking a step back and letting the First Commander digest it. The Hellhounds stopped their growling and went to go sprawl about the room like they normally did- suddenly, everything was back to normal. Jack clamly reached up and gave the back of Riddick's bald head a light smack, then stalked off rather airly…to go find her Second Captain. Riddick didn't watch her leave, instead keeping his eyes on Vaako.

And Vaako, for his part, only nodded and reached up to touch the small wound on the side of his face. It stung, but was not as bad as he'd feared. The blood was, however, beginning to run down into his armor. He jumped half a foot in the air when he looked up to see Riddick with a small towel in hand. He stood in a shocked, passive silence and let his Lord mop the blood off his face with surprising gentleness. And very suddenly, it was very embarrassing for everyone involved.

Riddick cleared his throat and made a small noise that might- MIGHT- have been an apology. And then followed it up with, "Good, now get out of here. I really do need a bath this time."

He turned and slunk into his bathroom again, leaving Vaako to stand there, jaw hanging open a bit. Finally, the First Commander shook himself vigorously and, sparing a glance at the bathroom door, made to leave his Lord's rooms.

Thus far, none of his important questions had been answered. But he felt like he had been given a promotion, anyways- if Riddick trusted his judgment enough to let him leave relatively intact, then he had made a world of progress.

...Then there was that whole towel thing. Weird.


	9. Chapter 8 Oddly Pleasing

**A/N: Here's another chapter! Sorry for the delay- I just had arm surgery, it's been hard to type. Lots of dialogue in this one!  
**

"You know, Riddick, you're kinda like a koala. Only instead of eating just eucalyptus trees, you eat people. Hah." Jack rolled over on his bed and peered at him upside-down.

Riddick had long since learned to just ignore Jack's random little anecdotes, especially when he was breaking down a recent kill. Vaako had just entered, unexpectedly and unannounced, and was standing off to the side and watching with morbid curiosity.

The man was, admittedly, very efficient- just hours ago, Riddick had asked him if he could manage to find any more 'lost' information on Furyans. A trip to the library and lunch, later, and Vaako was back with the badly damaged collection of books he had found. Some of them barely mentioned Furyans at all, but….well, he was thorough. Besides, any excuse he could pass to get the hell away from his Dame- and his suddenly overly clingy Second Commander.

And now here he was, watching his Lord Marshal calmly take someone apart, piece by piece, and either put the bloody stuff in little bags, or toss it to the eagerly awaiting Hellhounds- who had formed a little pile, directly behind him, begging for scraps to be thrown over the shoulder. It should have disgusted Vaako, but at this point he found it little more than a distraction.

Still- what the hell was a Koala? He opened his mouth and was about to ask- when the small comm link at his belt went off for the umpteenth time that day. One look at it and he sighed-

"Second Commander again?" Riddick asked, still wrist-deep in the chest cavity.

"Ye-es. I'm telling you, the man has developed a sudden fascination with me. Every day, he needs this that and the other done- all of them things he could EASILY do on his own." Vaako turned to leave after being formerly dismissed by Riddick- formerly here meaning an absent wave of the hand and a low growl. He had, by this point, learned that simply being comfortable around the powerful man was far easier than trying to walk on eggshells, as he had with Lord Zhylaw. Riddick seemed agreeable, even, when Vaako spoke to him on a slightly friendly level. And as long as Vaako refrained from doing so when in the company of any other Necromongers, it was fine by him, too.

***

Riddick, on his part, found himself rapidly- almost unwillingly- warming up to his First Commander. He'd met a few people in his lifetime that really deserved his respect. Vaako was one of them. The man might be physically smaller than him, and rather quiet- but he had a brilliantly calculating mind. And, Riddick recalled from their fight, months ago, quite capable of flawless combat. Not to mention he made the most priceless expressions.

Yes, Riddick was starting to get comfortable here- not something he had felt. Ever. And Vaako was certainly helping with that- and as an added bonus, when Riddick had no desire to step in and govern on any particular day, Vaako seemed willing to make a few decisions for him. Very reliable, actually. Surprisingly.

Forget the fact that Riddick was developing an almost-mistrust for the man's constant early departures from their meetings. Jack probably would have called it jealousy or something equally ridiculous- But Riddick just plain didn't like Vaako always wandering off to attend to the Second Commander. It didn't smell right.

He stood from his crouch on the floor, wiping some blood off his cheek with him shoulder. Jack was still on her back, flipping through some of the books Vaako had dragged up from the basement of the ship. Even from where he was, some yards away, he could smell the ink and dust as she turned each page. It was an oddly satisfying scent. He sniffed it in a little more, and stepped back to let the Hellhounds have at what was left of the corpse.

"Jack." She flipped over, abandoning the book to look at him, arms dangling off the egde of the bed, "Why do you think the Second Commander needs to keep Vaako away from me?" As soon as the words left Riddick's mouth, he knew he'd phrased it badly.

"OOOOOOOH, I knew it! You are totally jealous, aren't you! Riddick, that's just adorable! I mean, in like…a kinda scary way. But adorable!" She leaned off the egde of the bed some more, as if doing so would enable her to hear some deeply private gossip that, clearly, she thought she had a right to know.

"Jack, I'm not jealous. No." He wiped his hands off on a passing Hellhound, who didn't seem to mind. "I just think it's suspicious, don't you? The guy has been here forever- he isn't an idiot. So why does he need Vaako there every second of the goddamned day?"

"Stop LYING! Jealous, I'm telling you!" Jack was almost falling off the bed by now, biting her lower lip in an effort to keep from laughing. Or squealing. Whichever she thought would irritate him more.

"JACK. Cut it out." She giggled a little bit, and then tried to conceal it with a cough. "Can the little sister crap for a second and listen. Vaako is-"

"YOUR LUV-AH!"

That was what finally did it. With a snarl, he leapt forward, trying to pin her wriggling body to the bed- maybe just scare her a little, you know. Jack was, of course, largely unimpressed, and shoved her foot in his face, propelling herself away with a happy laugh. He went right after her, grabbing at- and missing- her thin little ankle as she twisted away again. Riddick knew she just liked to get a rise out of him- and every once and a while he let her have it.

Finally, he managed to draw his legs up underneath him and spring forward with a loud yell, landing square on top of her and spreading out. Try as she might, this was one "hold" she could never get out of. He was just too damn heavy. And now that he had her 'attention', he continued with his earlier point.

"Anyways. I think this Second Commander stuff is-" He grunted as she wedged her elbow up into his ribs, trying to create a gap large enough for her to ooze out from under him, "-Interfering with…you know. Command. Things. OUCH."

Jack had just done what she- and ONLY she- could get away with without being mauled. She reached up, grasping his goggles by the bridge of the nose and pulled them back- when she let go, they hit his head with a wholly satisfying _THWAK_. He ground his teeth together, raising up into a crouch and letting her get away as he readjusted the goggles. And then made use of what little acting skills he had- he gave a low whine, pushing his goggles off his head entirely and rubbing at his eye gingerly and bringing his hand away to "look" at the blood that wasn't really there. Jack fell for it, turning back immediately and peering at him, trying to pry his hands away from his "wound".

"Ohgod, Riddick, I'm really sorry I didn't mean to hurt you oh god is your eye ok? I'm really really sorry I just thought it would be funny and is that blood, holy shit I'm SO- AUGH SUNNUVABITCH."

And everything else after that was loud, screechy cursing as Riddick tackled her and threw her over his shoulder, toting her through his rooms to toss her, quite pleased with himself, into the bathwater.

***

The Second Commander was very pleased. Just a few days ago, he had managed to deprive the hideous Furyan of a few days of food with his little light show. Simple though it had been- just a matter of using a pressure gun to break into the control rooms, really!- it had worked so successfully, he was wondering if he could get away with it a second time.

And, of course, keeping Vaako out of harm's way was working splendidly as well. Of course, he had to feign stupidity to keep the First Commander at his side- helping him with perfectly simple tasks- but it was all fine, as long as Vaako was kept far, far away from the Lord Marshal. There was no doubt in his mind that one tiny wrongdoing would see Vaako on a dinner plate- at that was just not acceptable. After all- as soon as he got rid of the Furyan, Vaako would be taking his place.

He could have no way of knowing that even as Vaako stood next to him at the Command Center, he was already thinking about his next alotted time with the Lord Marshal.

***

When Vaako returned to his rooms much later in the "evening", he was pleased as punch. It was a relatively new emotion for him, and it seemed to irritate Dame Vaako. Apparently, if he was happy, she was not. It didn't matter, though- he ignored her, literally pushing past her to his own chambers to enjoy dinner.

As far as he was concerned, she didn't really matter as long as the Lord Marshal continued to trust him. After all, the more faith Riddick had in Vaako's abilities, the more he was kept away from Dame Vaako. And the better his job got. In fact, aside from the Second Commander seeming to have a sudden lapse in brain cells, everything was going swimmingly. Vaako could just keep his little convenience-only marriage and attend to Riddick all he wanted.

He paused, fork still jammed in his mouth. In the brief silence, he could actually _hear_ another man enter the rooms, boots scuffling loudly as the man- whomever he was- maneuvered Dame Vaako into her rooms, the two of them laughing and trying to whisper. Vaako rolled his eyes and continued eating- Dame Vaako had been satisfying herself with any man that stood still long enough since the very first day of their marriage. He had grown used to it, and after all this time, it just didn't matter any more. She could have her pompous, pathetic noblemen- as long as Vaako could have the occasional soldier.

But besides the point- he leaned back on his bed with a sigh, discarding the plate of half eaten food- he supposed his life really did amount to little. Currently, it seemed to revolve around Riddick, which was…well. Odd, actually. As the Lord Marshal, Riddick should be FAR more busy passing judgment, directing the Necromonger fleet, and courting noblewomen. And currently, he was only doing two of those things.

It gave Vaako another small pause and, as he often did when thinking, he got up to pace near the windows in his room. Really rather unacceptable. By this point in his ruling, the Lord Marshal should have women draped at his feet and, aside from Jack, he didn't have a single one. Jack didn't count- she was almost a little sister to the Lord.

Vaako stopped pacing for just a moment to shed some of the heavy armor he constantly wore around. It hit the floor, and he unceremoniously kicked it into a corner and leaned up against the massive window, staring out into space. Anyone watching would just assume he was a boring person, unfortunately.

He supposed by this point, there were some unhealthy rumors circulating about the Lord Marshal and his little human friend. Or maybe even about the Lord Marshal and his pack of beasts. Or maybe- Vaako almost grinned at the sheer aburdity of it- people assumed the Lord Marshal and HIMSELF were exploring a non-business relationship.

Which was silly, really! I mean, there was the bizarre familiarity he had with Riddick. And the vast amounts of trust the two placed in each other. And Riddick's seeming reluctance to see any of the court women. And the towel incident-

"Oh." Vaako said aloud, picking himself off the window. Well of course there were rumors about the two of them- it was halfway TRUE.

Not bothering to pick up his armor on the way out, Vaako quickly skidded out of his rooms and down the hall- always quick to report anything of note to his Lord Marshal. And this was certainly of note.

***

By the time Vaako came to his Lord's rooms, the Hellhounds had already settled in for the night and Riddick had plans to do the same. Jack was, as usual, keeping him up with her chatter. It was alright by him- eventually she would notice that he had already dozed off, and would leave.

So when Vaako burst into the inner chambers, both of them jumped a bit, startled out of the pre-sleep haze that seemed to claim everyone, Furyan and human alike. Vaako was not dressed to the nines, as he always was, which gave Riddick another pause. Jack recovered first, vacating the plush chair she was curled up in so Vaako could sit. She went to sit on Riddick's leg as he lay on his bed, stretched out like a great cat. He gave up trying to dislodge her after a few moments and turned to give Vaako his attention.

"Riddick. It just….occured to me." Vaako shifted a bit in the chair, suddenly quite aware that he had interrupted his Lord in a very…private time. Again, just unacceptable. "I'm sorry. I should probably have just waited until morning-"

"Yea." Riddick muttered. "But you're already here, so just spill it. I'm listening." He leaned back into the pillow a bit, quite relaxed. By this point, he figured Vaako meant him no express harm, other than keeping him awake.

"Well…there are some..rumors. About you, I mean. And Jack. Together." When neither of the two reacted, Vaako sighed and elaborated, "People seem to think you and Jack are…coupled."

It took a scant moment before Riddick gave a short laugh, and Jack followed suit.

"Ohgod, you think Riddick and I-"

"It's just stupid-"

"I mean…I mean EW."

Riddick shot Jack a small glare at that one and swatted her off her perch on his leg. He turned back to Vaako and Jack, still tittering at the horrifying concept, made to leave the rooms in favor of sleep.

"Look, Vaako. It just isn't happening. Jack's like…" He waited until she was gone, "Jack's like my little sister, got it?"

Vaako nodded- of course he understood. That didn't solve the problem, though. Not to mention the OTHER rumor that was circling about- the one he didn't really want to bring to his Lord's attention.

"I understand. But they're rumors, Riddick- if you deny them, people just run with it. They're like…horrible rashes. The more you itch, the worse they can get! There are better ways to deal with this. I have some suggestions for you to keep in mind-" Vaako failed to notice that Riddick was starting to doze, eyes sliding shut.

"I think perhaps the ladies of the court are a bit jealous, which is…" He was about to say 'understandable', "…silly. Maybe you should like to meet some of them? Not all of them are…" scheming little wenches, like his wife? "…unattractive. I think it would be best if you held some kind of…social event in which you could meet a few of them. That would certainly dispell ANY negative rumors out there, my Lord."

Riddick's sleep-logged brain took a moment to latch on to Vaako's point. And then he murmured, suddenly wishing he could disappear under his pillow for a few days, "…Social event?"

"Yes! Like…like an inaugural party." Vaako stood, clearly thinking that would be the end of the discussion.

"Hah." Riddick sat up, giving the other man a little sneer, "Absolutely not. I'm not a show and tell kinda guy, Vaako. Forget it, let them assume whatever the hell they wanna." He once again made himself comfortable, clearly thinking THAT would be the end of the discussion.

But instantly, Vaako was at the side of his bed, almost too close for comfort. "Look, Riddick- it's really for the best. Just a little party, that's all. Not too painful, right? Just go and mingle and try to find a woman or two to…make nice with."

Riddick glared at him from under his pillow, trying to block the man out. It didn't work.

"No, Vaako. Drop it, and get out." When that failed to work, he even tried, "Please get out?"

"NO. Just…DO IT. It's just. One. Night." Vaako crossed his arms, determined not to leave until he broke the stubborn man on the issue. Forget the fact that he was just WAY too close to the bed, and it was ungodly inappropriate, and if he had ever tried something like this on Lord Zhylaw, he would have been dead before he could open his mouth.

"If I say yes, will you leave?" Riddick growled, dangerously close to reaching out and throttling his First Commander.

"I suppose- but that's not the point! You should-"

"Fine. Yes. Now go the fuck away." He growled, settling down further under the covers.

"I should point out that you will need to arrange-"

"GO!" Vaako turned on his heel and left without another word, still pleased. On his way out the door, he caught the beginning of an explosive sigh. It made him smile, just a tiny bit. He would worry about his proximity to Riddick later.


End file.
